Hundreds killed in Baghdad stampede

Reporter: Kerry O'Brien

KERRY O'BRIEN: Now to breaking news in Baghdad, where as many as 600 people have reportedly been killed in a stampede near a Shiite shrine where up to a million pilgrims were gathered. For the latest, we're joined by the 'New York Times' correspondent Robert Worth in Baghdad. Robert Worth, what can you tell us about his incident which has only just recently unfolded?

ROBERT WORTH, 'NEW YORK TIMES' CORRESPONDENT: Basically, there were as many as a million Shiite pilgrims converging on northern Baghdad to go to the shrine of the Imam Khadim, it's an annual event, very important for Shiites. Early in the morning, about 8am, there was a rocket mortar attack near the shrine and then, in what appears to be a completely separate event, huge crowds of pilgrims were converging to cross a bridge about an hour later. And we think there may have been rumours that a suicide bomber was among them. And then the railings broke off the bridge, there was a stampede and hundreds of people fell into the water, into the Tigris River. The interior ministry is now telling us that about 600 people were killed, but we don't have final death tolls.

KERRY O'BRIEN: Was there any comprehension about the mortar attacks, about the motive for the mortar attacks? One assumes it was insurgents.

ROBERT WORTH: Yes, attacks by insurgents against Shiite pilgrims have been common. They've often happened on the annual Ashura holiday and other Shiite holy days. We do know that American military forces responded and attacked the insurgents who began that, but apparently that incident only resulted in a few people being killed. It seems to have been separate from the stampede.

KERRY O'BRIEN: Does it fit the recent pattern where civilians seem to have become much more targeted by insurgents than perhaps in the couple of years since the war?

ROBERT WORTH: Yes, it definitely does. You know, increasingly insurgents are targeting Shiites and, of course, the police force which is largely Shiite, rather than American forces. The attacks on the American forces go on, but this is a common thing and especially common when you have large members of Shiites gathered at mosques or on holy occasions. Again, on this case, it was not a direct attack being talked about, but simply the rumour of a suicide bomber in the crowd that led to the stampede that led to this, essentially, accidental death of huge numbers of people.

KERRY O'BRIEN: One assumes, though, that this outcome after the attack, even though that attack may not have been directly linked to the stampede, would not help the frictions between Shiites and Sunnis at a time when the government is trying to win acceptance for its new constitution?

ROBERT WORTH: That's certainly true. Tensions have been, you might say, unusually high lately because many Sunnis were very angry about the constitution being presented on Sunday to Iraq's parliament over their disapproval. So there has been elevated sectarian tension lately and one can imagine that this is only going to make things worse. The Shiite pilgrims, as they arrived at the bridge, were passing through a very strong Sunni neighbourhood. It's a neighbourhood called Adamiya where support for Saddam Hussein was very high. We don't have any indications that Sunnis directly caused this stampede in any way, but certainly there is a possibility for additional incidents later in the day and there's no question that the government will be anxious to diffuse any tension.

KERRY O'BRIEN: Robert, I know that you're in the midst of a gathering your information for the 'New York Times', so I'll leave it with you. Thanks very much for making the time to talk with us.